A Glitch In Time
by Prophe-Cass
Summary: Everyone who has been to the quantum zone for longer then a year has special abilities. Krolia and Kosmo can teleport. But Keith…Keith had the most useless power out there; the ability to alter age depending on emotions.


**Author's Note; Happy one year anniversary, GriffTalon! This is dedicated to you!**

* * *

"Alright, everybody." Keith said, tearing off his helmet as he beamed at his comrades.

The Paladins high-fived, laughing with victory.

"Good job. Some things I noticed, though, Hunk, your reaction time was a bit off, and, Pidge, try to minimize the scientific words to something…Lance here would understand. I know you want to help, but it's hard for us to understand."

Lance huffed indigently at the insult chucked his way, but managed to resume his hearty smile.

Pidge just gave her leader a double thumbs up, though it just looked like one thumb and a helmet, since her headgear was hanging off of one thumb.

"I'll work on that." Hunk nodded, bobbing his head slowly. "It's mainly my food craving acting up." Patting his stomach, he sighed. "Now that we're on Earth, it's harder to keep my mind off food. Real food!"

Everyone laughed, shaking their heads. He was right. Real good war already here. Lance had eaten too many garlic knots and was beginning to get slightly chubby, though nobody mentioned it. Keith had a large store of McDonalds in his shack, and when the Paladins asked where he got the money, he just gave them a mysterious shrug. Hunk was in an eating and baking craze, frequently bringing meals over to their houses so that their families didn't have to cook. Allura enjoyed eating new Earth pastries and meals. So far, her favorites were the English Tea Cakes, but enchiladas was recently thrown into debate. Pidge wolfed down the peanut butter and jelly sandwiches so fast that a passerby might believe she was in a sandwich-eating contest. In the last two weeks since they had gotten out of the hospital, she had already sprouted up an inch.

"Keith," Allura told him, dusting herself off as she proudly looked him in the eye. "You almost took a nasty hit in the tail. Only Lance's quick thinking saved it. You need to be more cautious, for in a real battle, we would be too busy to tag in."

Keith thought for a moment, then smiled at her. "I'll keep that in mind, Allura. Thank you. And Lance, I owe you one."

"Actually you owe me two." Lance grinned. "Remember last time?"

Keith scowled at the memory. "Right. That. Didn't I pay you back by agreeing to go on a date with your sister?"

"You said 'yes' to her of your own accord! And I didn't want you dating my sister! I don't want you dating anyone! I want you to die a bachelor!"

"In my defense, I didn't know it was your sister!" Keith flashed back. "I wouldn't have even considered talking to her if I knew! And, ouch."

"Yeah, yeah." Lance waved his hand. "But you still went on a date with her. And don't pretend that I don't know about Acxa."

"Ooh!" Hunk cooed, beaming at him.

"Predicted!" Pidge dabbed.

Keith cuffed her. He hated dabbing.

Allura gave him a toothy smile, nudging him. "I'd love to chat, you four, but more rebel fighters are scheduled to be arriving today, and I need to be able to open a wormhole for them."

Lance smiled and followed her, one arm pressed firmly against her back.

It was soooo obvious that the two right-limbs of Voltron were toying with the idea of dating. The others pretended like they didn't notice, but the two constantly held hands, shot each other loving looks, and Keith once found them talking, late at night, in the dining room. Hugging at the same time, even. Keith regretted it, especially how he accidentally dropped one of the forty-two knives he kept with him at all times. He would never get the sight of Allura and Lance's surprised, lion-red faces out of his mind.

They had never forgiven him. (Hence, them trying to point out every little thing he did wrong. It looked like family teasing, but it was a grudge. Big time.)

"You two should hit the showers." Keith instructed, whipping the sweat from his head with his forearm.

Hunk instantly agreed, snaking Keith in the back, causing his leader to stumble slightly, then headed off to the Garrison.

"Eh." Pidge shrugged. "I have to help Dad pack first. We're going to our house tomorrow, and I'm excited!"

"Isn't your house an hour drive from the Garrison?" Keith asked, turning in surprised to face her.

"Yeah." Pidge nodded.

"That means you won't be able to come back very often. Maybe once a week." Keith's eyebrows furrowed. " And the Lions were all going to stay aboard the Atlas to be properly charged and have all their systems repaired."

"Well…yeah…but it's going to be a longer absence then that," Pidge shifted her weight hesitantly. "I actually am grounded, so…yeah. I couldn't tell if mom meant it when she said I would be grounded for a few months, but…it's at least two weeks."

"Does anyone else know, yet?" Keith tried to hide his emotions, burying them as far down as they could go. He had to keep calm…only God and Krolia and himself knew what would happen if he got too emotional.

"No…I'm going to tell Shiro right now, though." Pidge bit her lip, slouching. "At least Dad will try to come frequently and can give me news of you guys."

"Yeah." Keith nodded, ruffling her hair. "Well, see ya later. When you get ungrounded or whatever."

"Yeah." Pidge agreed. "See ya round."

Keith began to turn away, choking back tears. They had only been on Earth for barely a month, and already the team was breaking apart. Wasn't it just yesterday that Lance mentioned traveling back to Cuba to help with reconstruction and to see just grandparents?

Before Keith could take a step in the opposite direction, Pidge flung her arms around his waist. "I'll miss you." She mumbled into the jumpsuit of his armor.

"Yeah, yeah." Keith grumbled, resting one hand on top of her head. "You too."

Pidge pulled back, giving him a strange look, almost betrayed. "Um…okay…" she pivoted, strolling away. As she undid the clasp on her forearm's armor.

Keith strode to his dorm as quickly as he dared without looking suspicious. He all but collapsed onto the couch in his apartment, leaning his head against the back of the piece of furniture.

Then he let the tears come, letting most of his mass disappear into the glitch of time that always surrounded his body.

Why did everyone have to separate? Just as they were coming together again, just as they finally were on Earth again, just as they were allowed to fly their lions again, just as they were let off bed rest…they separated. It was just…gone.

Why…?

Keith looked down at his hands, sniffling. They were now the size of an eight year olds. The size they were when his father…died. When he felt the most alone.

Keith moaned, slinking into the couch. If anyone saw him like this, they would freak. Including Krolia.

Ever since the quantum zone, Krolia and Keith had been effects by strange rifts in time. In Krolia's sake, it allowed her to glitch anywhere she wanted when her emotions acted up. In Keith's sake it altered his age.

And now, feeling lonely and depressed, he was eight.

Keith stood, dusting off his old jacket. That was one thing he didn't understand: while his body grew and shrunk, how did his clothes alter too?

Keith grunted in a low voice, sighing as he let his head hang. He really had to pull himself together. Stop being weak.

Keith wasn't sure how long he sat there in small form, but all he knew was that he eventually looked down at his hands and found them normal sized, and, looking into his reflection on his computer screen, spotted his scar on his right cheek.

Keith sat for a few more minutes before forcing himself to stand, knowing that he had a dinner with Acxa tonight.

He had accidentally learned from Lance's sister, Rachel, that being late was awful. And being early was scandalous. She had told him about the latter, and she had punished him for being the former. He wondered if it was unacceptable to be right on time.

Keith dusted himself off, pulling out the plaid shirt and black jeans that Shiro had bought for him as 'nice clothes'. Keith never believed they'd come in handy. But here he was. Going on a date. Was it a date? Acxa and him never really…called it that, they just called it a meeting.

Ah, holy crow.

He has messed up so badly with Rachel…

He hoped he didn't mess up with Acxa, though she was a different sort of woman. The dangerous kind. The powerful kind. Like…heck, he had even seen Kinkade checking her out once, though he did it subtly.

Keith huffed, prying off his armor, confirming that his emotions were in check, before slipping on his jacket, hurrying out the door and to the elevator. Honestly, if he bumped into someone he knew, (his mother, fellow Paladins, the MFEs, Shiro, Coran, Romelle, Kolivan, or one of the dozen main Chiefs of the Garrison) he'd definitely get really embarrassed, and probably resort to a fourteen year old, which was when puberty smacked him in the face. And that would be unfortunate. He planned to tell them, but not yet. Not yet.

Keith crossed his fingers as the elevator door opened, and he stepped out.

He made his way towards the east gate of the Garrison, hoping against hope that none of his friends would see him. He knew for a fact that the kitchen, which was where Hunk usually resided, was on his pathway, and was aware of the fact that there was no way around.

Keith crept silently to the door, peaking in. If Lance saw him, he'd be Blackmailed for looking so neat. Pidge would probably snap a photo. Shiro would just smile. Allura…who knew. Hunk would probably just give him some reassuring words, but it was embarrassing none the less.

Lickily, Hunk was preoccupied washing his hands as she chatted away to Shay, laughing as she remarked that cinnamon tasted much like naveeda, a spice on the Balmera.

Keith swing his way past the door and continued walking, ducking under the windows that lead to a few offices that Iverson and/or Commander Holt might be in.

Keith suddenly realized that the only thing worse then being seen looking actually decent was to have someone see him avoiding his friends, so he sat up, scratching the back of his head awkwardly. Um…he was most certainly *not* avoiding everyone. Heh, heh…

Keith continued on calmly, eventually reached the East gate, and leaned against the outside wall to wait.

He wasn't sure if it was one minute or ten when Acxa seemingly appeared in front of him, heavily resting on the metal with one shoulder. "S'up."

"S'up." Keith responded evenly, looking her up and down, though trying to do it discreetly. She wore some simple office clothes, a white t-shirt with a greyish green button-up shirt on top with a folder down turtle neck and a skirt to match. Her outfit could pass for fancy it causal, and she looked awfully pretty, though Keith quickly composed himself.

"Currently…" Acxa looked upwards, narrowing her eyes. "The sky is up."

Keith smirked, shaking his head. She had bad jokes, just like a certain Red Paladin Keith knew…

"Anyway, where are you taking me?"

Keith blinked, slightly surprised about the sudden change in subject. "What?"

"Where are you taking me?" Acxa asked, arching an eyebrow. "Or did you just want us to stand here?" There was a challenge in her voice, warning him that he better have something planned or there wouldn't be a repeat date.

Her arched eyebrow and scowl, jaw set, almost made Keith laugh. Almost.

"Yeah, yeah. Don't worry. I'm going to bring you somewhere…kinda classic here on Earth. It's one of my favorite places."

"Well, you better show me." Acxa muttered, excepting his arm semi-hesitantly.

Keith led her away from the Garrison, into the desert.

"Where are we going?" Acxa asked, gazing at the cliffs that they passed.

Keith didn't find the need to answer, pulling her into a tunnel in one of the spiraling pillars of rock.

Acxa remained silent after that, her curiosity peeked.

Finally, Keith led her into the light, where a shack stood, one one side blocked by tall cliffs, which they had just emerged from, and the other three directions was clear plains.

Keith led her closer to the shack, and Acxa was able to tell that it was very old, and not very taken care of.

"What is this place?" Acxa asked, miffed. She ran her fingers over the chipping paint of the outside of the house, blinking.

"Not where I wanted to take you." Keith gazed with longing at the house, shaking his head sadly. His fingers curled around a tarp, and he pulled it off, revealing a speeder, that looked brand new next to the rest of the house.

Acxa smiled and climbed on after him, wrapping her hands around his waist and they set off to…McDonalds.

* * *

Acxa settled into the chair across from Keith as he put down the board that had, posted in bold type, the numbers '42'.

"You're distant." She commented, tilting her head in a question. "Are you alright?"

Keith was in the middle of a shrug when he hesitated, sighed, then shook his head. "No…" he mumbled miserably.

"Want me to tell me about it?" Acxa asked, reaching across the table and resting her hand atop his.

Keith nodded slowly. "It's Pidge." He blurted, closing his eyes. "She's leaving; heading back to her house. I won't see her as regularly as I used to."

Acxa frowned thoughtfully. "Didn't you say once that Pidge's house is less then a varga away? That's not too bad."

"Have you ever heard of the term 'grounded'?"

Acxa shook her head.

"Well…it's basically when someone, usually a child, is ordered by their superior to stay in a secluded area or something and isn't allowed to leave or have anyone over." Keith explained, twiddling his thumbs.

Acxa nodded slowly.

"Several years ago, Pidge ran away from home to find her family, a brother and father."

"I kidnapped the father." Acxa reflected.

"Ye. Pidge, after five years of being AWOL had returned home, and her mother grounded her." Keith sighed, sagging in his chair. "Hunk is going back to Somoa to see his recovering niece, nephew, and little siblings. Apparently they mentioned being related to a Paladin, and Sendak took a…liking to them. Shiro's returning to Japan to try to repair his broken past and the country. Less importantly, Lance is returning to Cuba, with Allura, or so the gossip goes."

"Mmm." Acxa nodded. "Your friends are separating, following their own path."

"Yeah…" Keith muttered, ducking his head. "I guess…"

"Everything's going to work out fine, Keith." Acxa assured him, though her eyes held a darker theme to them. No doubt she was remembering Ezor and Zethrid.

"It's not like that." Keith huffed. "We've all been together for the better part of two years now. Even longer for the rest of the universe. Nobody can know us like we know each other. At least, not for a long, long time." Keith hastily remembered to get his emotions in check, straightening his posture before he struck or, more likely, grew. "I'm sorry." He sighed, shaking his head. "I invited you out on a date to talk about more present matters."

Acxa thanked the waiter as he set food in front of them. The sever eyed Keith, recognition fluttering across the waiter's face.

"You're a Paladin." The server gasped, staring at the young Paladin's scar.

"Yep." Keith nodded. "And I hate it when people go all fanboy over me. I also hate paparazzi." He growled, baring his teeth and focusing all his Galra genes on the waiter. His eyes must've flashed yellow, because the server let out a gasp of horror and shuffled on.

"Wow." Acxa blinked, admiring a French fry's yellow coating before shoving it in her mouth. She ate it experimentally before shoving a handful of them into her mouth. "Mmm! Keith, are you going to eat these?"

"Nope. I'm deathly allergic to potatoes." Keith shook his head.

"I thought you said they were French fries."

"Right, but they're made out of potatoes." Keith informed her. "I'm allergic because of my Galra blood, but…" Upon seeing Acxa's shocked expression, he stammered "b-but I don't think it applies to all Galra, of course."

"Just in case…" Acxa pushed the French fries away, but she finished what was in her mouth nonetheless. "I'm not gonna risk it."

"Yeah, probably a good idea." Keith admitted, chewing slowly on his Chicken McNuggets.

"What are those?" Acxa studied her friend's dinner with a critical eye, frowning.

"Heh. It's hard to believe you've never had McDonalds food before." Keith chuckled, pushing them closer to her. "Have one."

Acxa picked up one, wrinkling her nose. "They look like Klanmürl dung."

"Don't put that thought in my head."

"Mm. I was just saying." Acxa muttered, biting half of one off. "Oh! It's good."

Keith just about lost it.

Correction; he did loose it.

By the end of his bout of laughter, most of the restaurant had heard him, and several had snapped photos, tweeting them, putting them on Instagram and posting them on tumblr.

#AVoltronPaladinAndHisHotGirlfriend was a common tag, because why not?

Keith regained his composure, not yet realizing the attention he had drawn, nor was he aware of the video camera trained on him and Acxa.

Acxa started, frozen as she stared at him, the rest of the nugget halfway to her mouth.

"What?" Keith inquired, tilting his head. Surely laughing couldn't be too rare for him to do. Scratch that, it could be, but why was Acxa staring at him like he had suddenly grew a beard?

Also, several people were screaming, pointing at Keith.

"Keith." Acxa said slowly, straightening her back. "You just grew a beard."

Oh.

Oh.

OH.

Keith saw the problem now.

"Um, also you just like, grew a few inches and your clothes just changed." Acxa pointed, blinking at his clothes.

Hmm. That explained the chaos in the restraint. Confused and horrified fans fled the scene, shrieking in terror, though a certain blogger with a camera kept it pointed on the hybrid couple.

Acxa frowned at Keith, hesitantly looking around numbly. "I'm going to guess that changing features isn't a human thing."

"Yeah…" Keith deflated, stroking the newly-grown beard on his chin gently. "It's not. As far as I know, I'm the only one who has the ability," he paused before continuing, "in the entire universe."

"Well, then." Acxa huffed, standing. "Mind telling me why that is?"

"I…" Keith glanced at the workers, huddled in the back room, and at the few people still in their seats. "Let's go somewhere more private."

* * *

Keith was exhausted.

He had spent several long, tiresome hours trying to get Acxa to understand his…condition. He had finally been victorious, but…not without a price.

He was so ready to crash for the night.

"Well…" Acxa paused at her apartment, glancing back at Keith. "Despite everything, I still had a good time, Keith. I really had a good time." She offered him a toothy smile, though it looked threatening with her fangs exposed. She fished out her keys and slid them into the lock, turning it and unlocking the door. "Let's do it again sometime."

"Sure." Keith agreed, on the verge of lighting up red. "I-I mean, i-if-if you want to, that is."

"I would." Acxa blushed purple, smiling.

"Goodnight, Acxa." Keith smiled, turning to leave.

"Wait." Acxa protested, grabbing his arm.

"What-?" Keith broke of suddenly, finding her lips pressed against her cheek.

"What in the-?" Keith blinked, but found himself alone in the hallway, Acxa already having retreated into her dorm after kissing him.

Keith took a few steps back, blinked, then power walked back to his dorm.

Wow.

WOW.

Just…wow.

Note to self, never tell Lance, or he'll tease Keith nonstop. Or Allura, 'cause she'll tell Lance.

Keith entered his dorm, locking the door behind him. He loved Kolivan and Krolia, but they had no respect for privacy, barging through any door they pleased without knocking. A lock would only slow them down, not stop them. No, not stop them.

Keith turned around, halfway through with exhaling through his nose when he froze. Someone had intruded into his house and was sitting on his couch.

Scowling at the intruders, Keith crossed his arms. "Pidge. Shiro."

"Keith." Pidge's voice was strained and cracking, as though she was on the brink of tears.

"Keith. How was your date?" Shiro asked coldly, his flesh arm wrapped around Pidge's shoulders.

"What's wrong?" Keith asked can dropping his grimace as he approached her.

"Mind explaining?" Pidge sniffed, shoving her phone into his face. "Someone tweeted me this."

Keith took the phone from her fingers gingerly, careful not to break it. After a cursory look over of the screen, he saw that a video was in front of him, and he pushed play, his laughter sounding through the apartment until he managed to turn the volume down.

There he was on the screen, in McDonalds and laughing at Acxa's delighted, though slightly confused, expression. That's when he morphed from early-twenties-Keith to late-twenties Keith.

Keith knew what was coming when he looked up from the phone, so he took his time finding the off switch. Inevitably, he found it fairly quick as so had to look up at Pidge and Shiro.

Both were scowling, tear stains marking Pidge's face, and Shiro's expression looked disappointed, betrayed, even.

"And don't even think about saying it's photo editing." Pidge sniffed. "I've done too many edits myself to know what's real and what's not."

"Keith, what's going on?" Shiro asked, squeezing Pidge a little more closely.

Keith stayed silent.

The only sounds were the hum of the refrigerator, the breathing of the heater, and the rumble of fighter jets and jeeps nearby.

Keith, making an effort to avoid the subject, turned on the lights in the living room so that he could see them better, and moved into the kitchen, loading the dishes into the dishwasher.

"Keith." Shiro stood and moved over, sitting down on the bar stool. (Yes, Keith a bar-like table that cut away part of the wall so that one could see easily into the kitchen from the living room or vise versa.)

"What." Keith really wasn't in the mood to answer any more questions.

"What's going on?" Shiro repeated, the anger flying from his gaze and replaced by worry.

Pidge took a seat next to the Atlas' captain, and whipped the tears from her face. "Yeah, Keith. What's going on?"

Keith put the last plate in the dishwasher and closed it with his foot, turning to face them. "Well…I-" he paused, a sudden realization coming over him. "Wait-! I'm not a kid anymore! I don't have to tell either of you anything."

Wow. The power of adulthood.

Shiro looked shocked, maybe a bit hurt, and Pidge whipped her eyes again unnecessarily.

"Keith…" Shiro began, slumping. "It's true you're old enough that you don't have to tell us anything, but we're your friends. We care about you, and we have to know what's going on."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah." Keith snorted, the air brushing his hair out of his face. He made a mental note to get a hair cut. Not a big one, just a trim. "You know what? I don't want to say anything. Not today, at least."

"So, that's it?" Pidge's eyes flashed dangerously, and leaned as far as she could against the bar without getting hurt. "You're just gonna spit in our face and leave? You told Acxa, but not us? Your friends?"

"That's right." Keith drew back, scowling. "My life doesn't focus around you. At least, it shouldn't. You leaving has shown me that."

"Keith…" Shiro soothed.

"You know what, I'm sick of this!" Keith snapped, pointing at the door. "Get out of my house!"

"Keith." Pidge chided, sliding from her chair.

Keith was getting furious as Pidge neared him.

To his fury, Shiro followed her, steps unsure.

"Get out." Keith ordered as Pidge grabbed her arm.

"You are going to tell us what's going on." Pidge ordered, latching onto him like a leech.

"I said…" Keith felt a spark alight in his chest, consumed by his actions as he flung out his hands. "GET OUT!"

Pidge was thrown from his hands by the sudden movement, landing into the corner of the bar with a strangled cry of alarm.

Shiro had been standing closest to the land mark, and so he was the first to pick her up. Heck, he could've been the first one to pick her up if he was already in Japan, because Keith was frozen.

Shiro helped her to her feet, Pidge gasping in pain. Both were staring at Keith with a mix of horror and betrayal.

"I don't know who you are." Shiro's voice was threateningly low, his eyes flashing. "But you're not Keith."

That broke Keith from his shock, and he blinked. "What?"

Shiro didn't respond, helping Pidge to the door.

"Guys, wait-!" Keith reached a hand towards them, but they ignored him, closing the door firmly in their wake.

Keith glanced down at his armor, alarm filling his chest.

On his body was the Black Paladin armor, the familiar red was gone from view, replaced by black. Like his heart had become in his forties.

Black.

* * *

Keith wasn't sure what he did that night, but when he opened his eyes, the entire apartment was wrecked, and he was in his eight year-old form, huddled under the over turned couch, and his hands were wet from tears.

He had never felt more alone.

When his father died, it was just one person. And now he had hurt two of the people closest to him. And they had probably told the others.

He was in such a wreak. In too deep. Alone.

Keith pulled up his hood, zipped up his jacket, and pulled his hands through the sleeves so they were limp as he hugged his shoulders.

Stupid glitch. It had ruined his life!

He supposed he could go to his mother for moral support, but…

But Keith didn't dare stray from his room, just in case someone saw him like this, and he didn't want to risk being seen. Because this form was embarrassing. Especially because he was huddled in a futile position.

* * *

It wasn't long before someone touched his shoulder, rousing him from his sorrow.

Raising his eyes, Keith met soft, blue ones, seeming to look straight into him.

"Lance." Keith gapped, blinking at him.

"Hey, Keith. That's a good look on you." Lance responded, humor in his voice.

"Shut up." Keith grumbled, punching his arm.

"Okay, okay! Geez." Lance mumbled, rubbing his arm. "You still punch hard as a toddler."

Keith gave him a look that he hoped flashed all of his annoyance and anger on the Paladin. "Really? Toddler?"

"Yeah, well…how old are you, anyway?"

Keith gave him the death glare, causing Lance to flinch. "Eight. I think. Obviously."

"Ah." Lance nodded, looking him over. "You're small for your age."

"That's really not the best thing to say to me right now."

"Yeah, whatever, man. Are you okay, dude?"

Keith fell silent, staring at his hands.

"…Keith?"

Keith glanced up at him, frowning. "Why are you here?"

"Dude, we came to check on you. Shiro told us what happened."

"Is he still mad at me?" Keith asked, frowning. He hated how childish he sounded, then again, he was a kid.

"Oh, yeah, he's pretty mad." Lance nodded without thinking. "But he said he understands, so whatever, dude."

"I don't want Shiro to be mad at me." Keith whimpered, climbing out from under the couch. "What about Pidge?"

"She's fine." Lance flapped his hand dismissively. "It was mostly the shock that got to her."

Keith frowned around the room, thinking.

Once he learned to control his forms without emotions they could prove useful. But right now, he was just a danger to the team. Heck, he had knocked Pidge a clear meter yesterday!

"Are you sure she's okay? I didn't mean to hurt her." Keith asked, looking at Lance.

Lance was staring at him with a mix of awe and confusion, blinking every few seconds.

"…Lance?"

"Hmm? Oh, yeah, sure." Lance nodded, then resumed staring.

After staring at each other for about thirty seconds, Keith broke the silence.

"Alright. What's going on." It wasn't so much a question then a statement.

"Eh? Oh. Nothing. It's just…you're so tiny, and small, and little, and…I'm rubbing out of adjectives."

"No kidding." Keith grumbled.

"So, does, like, some of your memory go away when you're small? Do you like being small, or big? Did you wreck your apartment all by yourself?"

"No." Keith snapped, crossing his arms.

"'No' what?!"

"You're bothering me right now even more then you ever have before." Keith grumbled, pouting at Lance.

"I'm so sorry." Lance chuckled, biting the inside of his mouth. "I CAN NOT take you seriously like that. You really have to switch back."

"Not in the mood." Keith grumbled. And it was true. He really wasn't in the mood, thus couldn't turn back.

"Well…can you get into the mood?"

"You really don't understand how to works, do you?" Keith inquired, rolling his eyes.

"Um, noooo…we're all kinda waiting for you to tell us…"

"Yeah, well, I don't want to do that right now." Keith grunted, trying to walk away. His legs were so small. He wondered if this is how Pidge felt.

"I know!" Lance suddenly cheered, latching his hands under Keith's armpits and marching him towards the bedroom. "You need some sleep."

"Heh, let go of me!" Keith barked, trying to kick Lance. That didn't work so well because he was facing away from Lance, and the currently-older boy was holding him at arm's length. "Geez, kid! Calm down."

"I'm twenty-three!" Keith screamed, thrashing around. Unfortunately, Lance had a death grip on him, something that was very unusual.

"Maybe some day, kiddo."

"I really am twenty-three!" Keith protested, withering around even more. "I'm just in my eight-year-old body."

"Yes, and it's a miracle you haven't even tried a beer by this point."

"Remember earlier this week?" Keith asked, calming his movements so that he could twist his head and see Lance's face better. "When I was late for training?"

"No."

"Yes." Keith grinned evilly, then began struggling again. "This isn't funny! Let me down!"

"Say the magic word…"

"No!"

"That's not the magic word."

"No!"

"Nuh-uh."

"Go out of my room!"

"Okay." Lance pivoted, still holding Keith and made for the door.

"No! Not with me!"

"As you wish, your majesty." Lance set him down, before grabbing him again and carrying him under one arm into his bed. "Alright, buddy."

"I hate you." Keith grumbled as Lance tossed me carelessly onto his bed.

"But aren't I the ideal picture of an older brother?" Lance asked, pretending to frame his face.

Keith stared at him blankly.

"Hey, I know what'll make you laugh!"

"Don't you dare-!"

Lance tickled him anyway.

Thirty seconds later, Keith had pushed Lance away with his foot, and panted, glaring at the ceiling. "I hate you."

"So you've said. But you laughed when I did it, so you must like it!"

"Oh my gosh. I hate you even more now." Keith grumbled, glaring at him.

"Also, I snuck away your knife." Lance taunted, holding the knife above Keith's head.

"Hey!" Keith felt around his person, and, upon discovery that the knife in Lance's hand was, indeed, his own, tried to get it away from him. "Meanie!"

"Aw!" Lance cooed. "You even sound eight!"

"Give it back!" Keith ignored Lance's jibe, trying to grab his knife.

"Hey, don't get heated, squirt!"

"Give it!" Keith jumped up and tried to crawl up Lance's arm, but the older boy tossed the knife to his other hand, looking pleased with himself.

Keith cursed silently under his breath, beginning the tedious journey to Lance's other arm.

"Dude! Language! Eight-year olds shouldn't know that language."

"I just said Quiznak! And I'm twenty-three!" Keith glared, jumping to the ground as he took a moment to assess the best way up Lance's back.

Suddenly, a fantastic reference and prank crossed Lance's mind, and he began falling backwards. "Oh-no! Gravity! Is! Increasing! On me!"

"No, it's not!" Keith protested, bracing himself as he held Lance up. (Barely.)

"It is, too, Keith. Same thing happened yesterday." Lance joked. Before Keith could comprehend the retort, Lance collapsed completely on him.

"Ow! You rotten idiot! Your body is crushing me!" Keith complained, wriggling out from underneath him. "Why do you act so weird?!" As he was reached for his knife, Lance suddenly jumped up, wrapping his arms around his neck.

"Sleep," Lance cooed, "sleeeeep."

"Mmmph!" Keith choked, struggling. "Mmm-!" He sagged, dropping.

Lance slowly released him, and Keith took a deep breath, then his breathing slowed to a steady pace. "Victory!" Lance whispered, dabbing. Keith didn't punch him, so he must be asleep for real.

Good.

Lance pushed him into his bed, wrapping him up in blankets and shaping him into a nest.

"Blackmail." Lance giggled, snapping a picture.

* * *

Three Vargas later, Keith woke up and decided he could sleep for a few more minutes.

* * *

When Keith finally woke up properly, the first conscious thought was that he probably overslept.

Then, the memory of the previous morning, six hours earlier, hit him. He was going to kill Lance.

Keith sat up too swiftly, stopping for a moment to clutch his head.

The third thing he realized was that he must have grown to normal size while he slept.

The fourth was that he wasn't alone.

"You're awake!" Hunk greeted him, shoving a tray of cookies into his lap. "Here, I finally remembered how to make cookies with Earth ingredients. Also, Shiro said not to kill Lance for stealing your knife."

"Um…" Keith, having freshly woken up, was still a bit dazed. "…what?"

"Oh, right. Sorry." Hunk thought for a moment. "You okay?"

"Yeah." Keith blinked down at the cookies.

"You sure?" Hunk asked, arching an eyebrow. "Lance really isn't the best baby sister."

"I was not a baby." Keith huffed, glaring at him. "And I didn't need a babysitter. I was exactly the age I am now except smaller."

"Whatever you say. Hey, before Pidge leaves, can you explain what's going on to us?"

Keith blinked, breaking a cookie from the tray. "…yeah. Okay. Give me a half an hour to get all cleaned up, and…just don't pressure me."

"Oh, yeah, sure dude. We've all seen what happens to people who pressure you."

Keith winced.

"Oh, man! Sorry. I didn't mean it like-!"

"She's fine, right?"

"Yeah. It was the shock factor that effected her most. You're usually so gentle around us."

"Yeah, well…" Keith took a bite of his cookie, chewing it slowly. "Sometimes my anger gets the best of me."

"Shiro said you grew to the size of Zarkon!" Hunk whimpered, lifting his hand as high as he could above his head. "He said eight feet tall, built like a grizzly."

"Yeah. Sounds like me." Keith nodded before catching himself. "I mean, older me! Not me currently, but like, me as an adult. Um…jerk. Anger issues."

"Aren't you a dolt now?"

"Yeah. I am…hey! That was uncalled for!"

"I'm sorry!" Hunk laughed. "It was just priceless! Also, Lance said he would treat me to Wendy's if I did it."

"I hate you both."

"Yep! Anyway, we'll be waiting in the commons." Hunk started for the door, taking the rest of the cookie tray with him. "Oh…and Keith?" He asked, turning towards the one in question.

"Mmm?"

"I'm really sorry that…it's not that we don't trust you, it's just that…" Hunk looked at him sadly. "…I don't understand why you hid whatever this is from us. Are we really that distant?"

Keith stared at the blankets surrounding him, avoiding the question. He loved them all, he did, but…holy Quiznak. Sometimes he just wanted to keep things to himself. He still didn't want to talk about it, but he owed it to them at least.

"Um…Keith?" Hunk asked, the worry evident in his eyes.

"Oh, right." Keith raised his eyes to Hunk's offering him a smile. "I'm not space mad, okay?"

Hunk smiled, knowing this was Keith own way of saying 'I love you guys.'

"Alright, captain." Hunk saluted. "See you later."

Keith gave Hunk a thumbs-up, finishing his cookie.

It wasn't until Hunk left that he deflated, glaring at the door. Well, no sense in delaying it. He better get up and at em'.

Half an hour.

Tick tock.

* * *

Keith pushed open the door to the lounge, hating how it immediately made heads swivel.

Lance was the first to his feet, tossing Keith his knife and looking madly guilty.

Keith caught it by the hilt easily and glared venom at Lance before movement caught his attention.

Pidge made her way over to him, slower then before, and buried her face in the area between his stomach and his chest.

Keith rested his hand on her head, and glanced at Shiro.

The older man was looking exceptionally apologetic, guilt on his face.

Allura was watching him cautiously, holding onto Lance's hand gently.

Keith was going to have to ask Lance when he was going to propose.

Hunk was nervously chewing on a cookie, gazing at everyone with worry.

Coran was-surprise, surprise-fiddling with his mustache, and Romelle was trying to braid her hair, but failing. Rivazi, or, better know to the Paladins when they weren't in the middle of a mission, Nadia, was trying to show her how to, but the sudden distraction caused by Keith wasn't helping.

Leifsdottir, Ina, was typing rapidly on a device, frequently pausing to turn it's antenna towards Keith, nodding slowly as she changed the angle.

Her boyfriend, Keith's arch nemesis, (bigger then even Lance) James Griffen, sat next to her, one arm wrapped around her shoulders.

Kinkade, first name Ryan, wasn't even sitting down, leaning against the wall in the background with arms crossed. His eyes were piercing, calculating, seeming to burn into Keith's soul.

Keith suppressed a shutter, only moving to sit down when Pidge unlatched herself from him. Her head was wrapped with a small laying of bandages, but that's it. There was only a tiny bit of red near the back, but nothing too serious.

Looking round the room, Keith realized his girlfriend wasn't present. Honestly, he was relieved that was so, he really didn't want to bother her with his personal problems like the night before.

"Alright, Keith. First things first." Shiro cracked his neck, making half of the present people winch. It always made them cringe because one) disgusting sound, two) it sounded like he broke his neck. "Keith, when did this start?"

"Hmm." Keith thought about this, blinking at the ceiling.

"Wait, why did this happen?" Pidge interrupted. "That should be the first question."

"The quantum abyss." Keith immediately answered. "The quantum abyss started it." At everyone's slightly perturbed expressions, he elaborated. "The quantum zone is basically a huge zone in space that had time paradoxes in it. Flashes from exploding planets create glimpses into the past or future. The past glances usually are full pictures, while future peeks are just quick scenes, hardly lasting for more then a second before passing to the next one."

"What were some of the future looks?" Kinkade asked, breaking one of his common hours of silence.

"Well…" Keith pondered this. "Near the end of the trip, I saw a girl with black hair. Her bangs looked kinda like Shiro's, and were brown. She wore the black paladin armor. Uh…a boy was clad in the red armor, with Shiro's hairstyle except black. They both looked Japanese, couldn't have been more then twenty. Um…a wolf-ish looking girl was dressed in the green suit. A Balmeran/human girl was dressed in yellow, and a…" Keith hesitated. This next one might give too much away.

"Go on." Lance prompted.

"There was a boy." Keith gulped. "He had blue Altean marks, and wore a jacket similar to Lance's. He had bluish-white hair, like Allura's."

There was a moment of silence where Allura and Lance gripped each other's hands more tightly.

"They formed Voltron, together, and we were all standing behind them. The old and the new."

There was more silence, in which everyone said nothing.

Keith pulled his knees to his chest. He didn't mention that he had also seen, from the flashes, who each of these children's parents were, but he didn't find that necessary to say. He didn't want to mess up the timeline more.

"Well, then." James finally broke the pervasive silence, beaming at them. "Sounds like you all know who your successors are gonna be. Better start preparing yourself for the next generation."

Nobody in the group liked James at the moment. At all.

"Alright, where is this quantum abyss?" Allura asked, gazing inquiringly at Keith.

"It surrounded the Altean colony. It was the perfect hiding spot."

"So that was the beginning of the time-shifting?" Shiro asked.

"Yes…and no. The time-glitch didn't start until about a month later, but Mom and I knew being in the quantum abyss for so long had some side effects, so we were prepared." Keith explained.

"So, the grizzly form. How old was that?" Nadia asked, blinking.

"Forty. And don't call it 'grizzly form'."

"What? It's the truth." Nadia shrugged.

"I've never heard of a time glitch before." Even Coran sounded impressed.

"Is that why you never show emotion?" Romelle asked, staring at him. "Why you always, as Earthlings would say, 'give us the cold shoulder'?"

"Nicely done, Romelle!" Allura grinned, giving her a thumbs up.

"Thank you." Romelle nodded.

"Yeah. I guess that's the reason." Keith admitted. "I'm usually good at keeping it under control, but…last night…the bottled up stuff kinda unleashed, and…man, Pidge, I'm so sorry."

"It's fine." Pidge pointed to the back of he head. "Besides, I'll probably have a scar to show for it. 'Hey, I went toe-to-toe with Keith's grizzly form and lived!"

"Don't call it grizzly form."

"Sorry, man." Hunk shrugged. "We began calling it that last night and it kinda stuck."

"Would you rather it be 'Zarkon form'?" Lance joked.

"No! That's even worse!" Keith wailed.

"Hmm." Ina interrupted their bickering, holding her device gingerly as she turned it.

"What is it?" Pidge clambered over several people to get to her fellow nerd, blinking at the screen. "Oh."

"'Oh' indeed." Ina nodded.

"Why? What's going on?" Keith asked, knowing it had something to do with him.

"I think it's a mix. Probably the time paradox and Galra blood together." Ina decided.

"Hybrid blood shouldn't be this high. Believe me, I've done plenty of tests before." Pidge protested.

"Guys. I know you're talking about me. What's going on?" Keith moved towards the two girls, as did everyone else, pressing in on all sides.

"Oh." The murmur spread quickly, pervading the entire group.

"Yes. It appears so." Ina agreed, frowning.

"I have no idea what I'm looking at." Keith deadpanned. It had been a stressful twenty-four hours.

"It looks like, Keith, the time stuff is tied to your emotions. So if your feelings are based on youth, you'll shrink. You can literally live forever without quintessence." Pidge pointed to the screen, the vitals so high their threatened to pop off the screen.

"Hmm." Keith grunted, squinting at the vitals. "I can literally live forever." He clarified.

"Okay, probably not forever. You'll eventually be killed, like Zarkon, but you'll last a good thousand years before the time thing begins to fade. You basically found the Fountain of Youth."

"Of course, such a fountain is a myth." Ina pointed out. "A legend invented by the Spaniards, or perhaps by the Native Americans. As more evidence has popped up, the more doubtful it becomes who first invented the idea."

"Alright, you two are getting off topic." Shiro sighed, staring at his adopted brother.

Keith thought about his youth, one that could be restored by trips to the quantum abyss. "You know what? I'm not going to become another ten thousand year-old super villain. I'm not going to be Zarkon." Keith decided, lifting is head. "I'm going to let myself grow old, as naturally as I can. If I'm going to die, I'm going to die with all of you."

* * *

 **Author's Note; Please Read & Review!**


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